A deadly heatwave in Japan has claimed the lives of 40 people – including a young man dressed as a mascot dancing at a theme park.
Yohei Yamaguchi died on Sunday after collapsing during a dance rehearsal at an amusement park in Hirakata, Osaka, The Japan Times reported.
The 28-year-old had been practicing a dance routine while wearing a 16kg mascot costume when he lost consciousness.
The temperature had reached 33.2C on the day, though had dropped to 28.7C when Yamaguchi fell ill and was rushed to hospital.
The part-time worker played the role of a fairy character who lived in the park, police said.
In a statement reported by the Asahi Shimbun, the park said: “We would like to offer a deep apology from the bottom of our hearts. We will find the cause of it and work to prevent it from happening again.”
It added that it would suspend performances using character outfits during the heatwave.
Japan is experiencing its highest temperatures since records began, with the mercury hitting 41.1C earlier this month in Kumagaya, a city in Saitama prefecture about 40 miles north-west of Tokyo. This broke the previous record of 41C in Ekawasaki on the island of Shikoku on August 12 2013.
Thousands of people in Japan have been rushed to hospitals with heatstroke symptoms during the heatwave. Kyodo News agency has tallied more than 40 deaths. Many of the victims have been elderly people who were not using air conditioning.
The temperature reached 39C on Monday in central Tokyo, the highest temperature this year. The worst of the heatwave is expected to be over this week.
Authorities have warned people to stay inside and use air conditioning.
“The weather recently in Japan is like being in a sauna,” Tokyo governor Yuriko Koike said at a news conference focusing on the 2020 Summer Olympics, which open in Tokyo two years from Tuesday.
She said that the city has been working to address heat concerns for both fans and athletes.
The marathon and some other outdoor Olympic events will start early in the morning. Other steps include developing road pavements which emit less surface heat, setting up mist sprays and planting tall roadside trees.
Koike also cited traditional ways of cooling in Japan, such as hanging straw screens and spraying water on road surfaces.
“But our traditional wisdom is not enough to beat the heat like this,” she acknowledged, “so we will be using cutting-edge technology.”